Ben Stokes may be England's captain, talisman and crisis-magnet, but Ryan Sidebottom has warned that one man cannot carry a sinking ship, and insists the rest of England's squad must finally "take responsibility" or face a humiliating Ashes whitewash.
Captain Ben Stokes battled for 152 balls for his half-century, but even the Durham superstar couldn't drag England out of the fire in Brisbane. Another eight-wicket hammering has left England 2-0 down and clinging on to Ashes survival.
But Stokes, ever the fighter, will not give up. His Three Lions will need to do what hasn't been achieved since Don Bradman's Australia in 1936/37 - overturn a 2-0 deficit in Australia and still win the urn. Back then, Bradman reeled off scores of 270, a double ton, and 169 to turn the series on its head.
For England to produce their own miracle, they'll need far more than Stokes' meagre 77 runs across four innings - or the slowest 50-run partnership of the Bazball era, which he shared with Will Jacks.
And former England left-arm quick Ryan Sidebottom says the entire team must overhaul their approach when speaking exclusively to BOYLE Sports ahead of the third Test in Adelaide.
"Why have England not identified key moments rather than just trying to attack, attack, attack their way out of a situation - grind it out, guts it out, and use your technique," he blasted.
"We can do it. We just don't do it in key periods, and we need to do it in Adelaide. If we don't, we're going to lose again. I'm really worried that it's going to be 5-0 now."
Stokes remains the series’ third-highest wicket-taker (8), behind fellow Durham colleague Brydon Carse and Ashes destroyer Mitchell Starc (18).
Leaning entirely on the North East talisman is a recipe for total collapse.
And Sidebottom didn't sugar-coat the pressure weighing on England's skipper, who has been asked to bat, bowl, inspire and rescue his side on a near-daily basis. When asked who needs to step up, he didn't hesitate.
"Everyone. It shouldn't just be down to an individual or another figure alongside Stokes… Most of them have played a lot of international cricket and need to take more responsibility for themselves. One for their own games, and to back each other up a little bit more."
And he insists the senior core - especially the long-serving batters - must rise to the occasion in Adelaide.
"We know Australia's a tough place to go. This is where your senior players, your Roots, Ducketts, Crawleys, Popes… they have all got to contribute more and do more for the team. You can't just leave it all to one player. If they rely on Stokes or Root, we won't win a single game, it'll be 5-0, and I'm sure a few heads will roll if that's the case."
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